According to the Wall Street Journal, the Dalian Wanda group – which owns Wanda Sports, and is itself owned by China’s richest man Wang Jianlin – is potentially interested in buying the Amaury Sport Organisation.

ASO owns the Tour de France and is a majority stakeholder in the Vuelta a España.

The Wall Street Journal states that people familiar with Wanda’s plans have attested to Jianlin’s interest in ASO.

It added that the deal isn’t advanced at this point and that discussion are at an early point.

Jianlin is China’s wealthiest person with an estimated fortune of almost $30 billion. In addition to many other business interests, he owns a 20% stake in Spain’s Atlético Madrid football team.

In early 2015 he purchased InFront Sports & Media for $1.2 billion. The company holds some of the marketing rights to FIFA’s World Cup.

It also represents the Ironman series, all seven Winter Olympic sports federations and several of the summer federations too.

Velon is owned by 11 of the 18 WorldTour teams. Its CEO Graham Bartlett spoke at length to CyclingTips about the partnership, and said that streaming live data and live video from within the pro bunch was the biggest priority for InFront at this point in time.

Wanda is already involved in race organisation in cycling. It owns Ironman, which in January purchased Lagardère Sports’ endurance division.

Cyclingtips asked Bartlett about the previous rumours that InFront might make a major move into cycling race organisation, perhaps via the purchase of cycling’s Grand Tours.

“Velon’s relationship is with Infront Sport and Media,” he answered. “Of course, I think going forward there will be a lot of conversations around the wider group that Infront sits within. Part of that is Wanda Sports, of course. But it is too early to speak about wider-ranging opportunities that may come about.

“For the moment we are really focused on the core partnership with Infront.”

The Wall Street Journal states that Wanda’s plans to push into France are more advanced in other areas. It says it is in advanced talks to invest in a retail and cultural development known as Europa City near Paris.

Sources have said that this is a mixed-use development spanning nearly 200 acres, and that Wanda’s investment would likely go towards building a large amusement park there.

Jianlin has an estimated fortune of almost $30 billion. Last November he said that Wanda had major ambitions.

“Wanda has a very high expectation for the development and prospects of the sports industry.

“The significance of establishing Wanda Sports is not only to integrate Wanda’s interests in sports, but also to truly expand and strengthen Wanda’s businesses in the industry, while at the same time grasping the rapidly growing opportunities in the Chinese sports market.

“We want to truly impact the development of sport around the world.”

If the ASO talks do progress to the point of a sale being made, he will have gone a major way towards achieving that goal.

So, what is it the Wall Street Journal states? Quotes? Sources? Or is it only hearsay like the last article about this rumor? It sounds like they have an interest in sports, cycling is a sport, therefore they look to purchase ASO. Am I really supposed to make that leap?

Shane Stokes

The Wall Street Journal states what is indicated above. You don’t have to make any leap.

roddders

Can’t see ASO selling, especially to the Chinese.

velocite

Why not, rodders? Wouldn’t they have their price?

I do wonder, though, what machinery the French Government might have to review foreign investments.

But if this sort of thing eventuates the current ASO-UCI standoff is put into perspective.

roddders

Because if someone with little respect for tradition gets involved, the tour will die. All this talk of revenue share and on-bike camera footage is bs. ASO do the hard work in developing the tour and making it a great event. As soon as this formula starts being messed with it’ll be down hill fast. The French public tolerate their event each summer. No way will they tolerate a foreign owned event doing the same.

velocite

You may be right about what might happen to the Tour if the Chinese bought it, though I don’t think so. But I doubt that thought would stop ASO from selling it if the price was right.

roddders

the french are generally less infatuated with money than the UK / USA and tradition counts for much more.

Dave

Indeed.

Unlike in Australia where it is actively encouraged, blocking foreign attempts to buy out French companies is quite a popular public policy issue. Even though ASO would be small potatoes compared to companies worth billions of euros, the symbolic value would be huge for the party in power.

J Evans

It was evident from the start that the deal with Velon was about a lot more than just sharing data and on-bike footage – billionaires don’t focus on such trivialities.

The teams in Velon are trying to grab power and the UCI is siding with them because they want the power and money instead of ASO.

ASO have only their own interests at heart, but – fortunately for the cycling public for the last hundred years – their interests are their races.

The interests of very rich people tend to be money, rather than sport, history or affordable TV access for the public.

The interests of Velon are clearly an attempt to make more money out of cycling than is actually there (it’s just not that popular a sport – they need to accept that). In any sport, the teams should not be in control. These teams seem to think they’re owed something – but they’ve done very little for the sport.

By siding with Velon, the UCI puts its own existence at risk – certainly its relevance.

The ASO might not be wonderful, but look at the others in this: rich, greedy, selfish teams; incompetent (at best) UCI; a man with the ethics necessary to become the richest man in a regime like China.

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